


Side By Side - Poised Senses

by Sugar_and_Salt



Series: Opposite & Side by Side [3]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Romance, Supernatural - Freeform, slight!angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-15
Updated: 2015-05-15
Packaged: 2018-05-11 11:04:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5624662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sugar_and_Salt/pseuds/Sugar_and_Salt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A story about two people with no one to talk to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Side By Side - Poised Senses

**Author's Note:**

> Another one of my older works, slightly revised and linked to the others in this series(though it's entirely possible to read them on their own).  
> Have fun reading and feel free to ask questions or give me feedback - I'd be delighted~ ♥

 

  
It was a warm day at the end of summer. Even though heavy rain poured down onto everything it could reach, the sun was shining unusually brightly in between the grey clouds.  A lone figure was sitting on the edge of a short wall. The slender boy was positively drenched, his blond hair sticking to his face in wet strands as much as his clothes were clinging onto his slim frame. His equally slender hands grasped the edge tightly, pale fingers turning even whiter against the reddish stones.  
He could see the warm sunrays reflecting on every wet surface blindingly.  
He could smell the rain, heavily permeating the sweet late-summer air.  
He could hear the loud pitter-patter of the heavy raindrops against the leafs above his head.  
He could taste the summer on his tongue, it's bittersweet flavor.  
He could feel the soft wind coldly against his wet cheeks.

Still, there was no one to share his thoughts with.  
No one.  
 

* * *

  
_Black. Everything was black.  
I couldn't see anything.  
Couldn't hear a sound, couldn't smell or taste anything, I couldn't even feel my own body._

_For the longest time I didn't realize anything at all. Trapped in a world of dreamless sleep, of half-consicious dreams.Then realization slowly sank in, as the dreams kept reminding me of a world that grew more and more foreign to me.  
My mind was hazy. Whenever a clear thought began to form in my subconsciousness, soft but insistingly bubbling to the surface, I would drift off into the black again.  
I was helpless. Losing against myself.  
Lonely.  
That is, until that soft voice called out, echoing into the emptiness of my mind.  
From then on, for onlookers nothing changed.  
I still couldn't hear, feel, nor see.  
But I wasn't alone anymore._  
 

* * *

  
"Hello Kris."  
_Hey._  
"How are you doing?"  
_Pretty much as always, I guess. **You** tell me._  
"Well, you do look gorgeous as always."  
_Haha, thank you. So how about you, then?_  
"Me? Ah, nothing interesting happened."  
_Tell me, anyway. Maybe I'd consider it interesting, you never know._  
"You're just too lazy to lead the conversation."  
_Might be true. Now come on, tell me. Please._  
"Ugh, fine. But don't you dare fall asleep, since it's really, really boring! So today I worked at the conbini like every Monday. And there were no interesting customers at all. There was just that weird cat-obsessed ahjumma, that always turns up in the morning..."

_

 _Luhan.  
I had only seen his face for a split-second, met his sparkling eyes for only that tiny fragment of a moment, before my world broke down and faded to black; but that moment alone was enough to paint his face into my dreams, to recall the soft blonde hair and pale skin. And those eyes. Again and again._  
_

 _Say, Luhan?_  
"Yes?"  
_I was wondering..._  
"Yeees...?"  
_...Are there any other patients in my room?_  
"Hm? No. There's another empty bed, though. I think this room is reserved for gifted ones."  
_Huh... Surely they could make an ecxeption for me, couldn't they? Seeing as my power is no threat to anything at all..._  
"Are you on onto that again? Stop disregarding your gift, flying is awesome. You can be free. And it works just for you, you don't need anyone or anything, unlike me."  
_Yeah, but I always wanted to get in contact with other people. Having a gift, however useless, made it so much more complicated. You, on the other hand-_  
"I know, I can connect easily. But still... Being able to create connections to everything and anything is even more useless when there's no one to connect to."  
_You're connected to me right now._  
"Obviously. Yet you still insist on company in your room? I'm wounded."  
_I don't know why. I was just wondering. Whether someone was suffering beside me, without me even noticing._  
"In that case I can assure you: There's no one here but you and me. Gosh, even now you're trying to save the world."  
_I don't think I'll ever be able to save anything anymore._  
"Shush. What's wrong with you today?"  
_I'm sorry..._  
_

 _Luhan.  
When I heard the voice telling me its' name, I already knew it would belong to that sparkling eyes. I don't know why. It just naturally occurred to me.  
And I was right.  
The last person I ever saw was named Luhan.  
Luhan was also of Chinese origin and a little older than me, though I could've sworn he looked pretty young. He had also left his family behind to come to Seoul. He was also a gifted one. He also didn't know what the next day would bring.  
We had many things in common.  
The most obvious one being that we cared to save complete strangers._  
_

"So, Kris?"  
_Hm?_  
"Today, the little boy you saved came to visit you."  
_Really? I'm glad he's alright._  
"He seems a little weak, but he's being taken care of."  
_Yeah? That's good to hear._  
"I heard from your doc that he comes over on a regular basis."  
_Oh, he doesn't need to bother himself with it. You can tell him it's okay._  
"Please, he's obviously a stubborn one. He proclaimed he'll come to visit again and again, until you awake."  
_I... I don't want to burden him with negative feelings._  
"Kris. You saved him from getting hit by a train. Of course he has strong feelings for you. He told me that he still couldn't believe his luck, having been found by you that day."  
_It was a mere coincidence, though._  
"Still, you saved him."  
_Well, you saved me as well._  
"That wasn't the same."  
_Yes it was. You told me the boy was unconscious. If it wouldn't have been for you, I would have bled to death._  
"I didn't revive you..."  
_...Yet you called for help until you found someone who could._  
"Ah, arguing with you is just so pointless. Anyways, as I was saying... The boy is visiting you from time to time, just so you know. He is endlessly grateful and keeps praying for you to wake up one day."  
_..._  
"And I'm praying for you, too."  
_..._

_

 _The concept of time didn't actually apply to me anymore. I didn't know whether it was day or night, Monday or Sunday, it just wasn't important. Still, I felt that Luhan visited me at least once a day. And he always stayed for quite some time, even though I couldn't picture the exact minutes or hours._  
_

"Hey, Kris?"  
_Uh... Y-Yeah? Hi. Have you been here for a long time?_  
"Ah, no, don't mind it."  
_God, this is embarrassing. Can't you just, I don't know, wake me up? Call out to me in my thoughts or something?_  
"That'd be pretty rude."  
_Nonsense. It's probably nowhere near a reasonable time to sleep anyway. What time is it?_  
"Uhm... Exactly 2:30 in the morning."  
_What the hell, Luhan? Not that I'd mind in any way, but... Go home, man! Catch some sleep!_  
"I'm not tired, don't you worry. My shift at the conbini begins later."  
_You're crazy... Who even let's you in at this time?_  
"Oh, I'm pretty good with your doctor, he always manages to sneak me in. I think he has a suspicion about our connection."  
_Are you flirting with my doctor? ...Is he a pedophile?_  
"Excuse me, Mister, I'm older than him-"  
_No way!_  
"-And also older than you, if I might remind you."  
_...So am **I** a pedophile, then?_  
"...Do you want me to go home?"  
_No, no, just kidding! ...Seriously, though, is my doctor handsome?_  
"He is, sort of. I guess. He's also Chinese."  
_I don't like it._  
"Aww, Cutie, don't be jealous. He's happily taken. And guess who's the lucky one...?"  
_Huh? How would I know? I know absolutely no o-_  
"It's the gifted one you rescued."  
_Really now?_  
"Yeah, they make a fascinating couple. Fire and more fire. Makes me wonder who's on top in their relationship."  
_Oh God, Luhan._  
"What?"  
_You're... You're so... Shameless._  
"Huh? Why?"  
_I don't want to discuss the sex life of other people!_  
"You barely know them, though."  
_No improvement there._  
"Well, okay, you can just as well tell me about your-"  
_Stop right there._  
"If you're interested in my-"  
_I'm not._  
"...Booo~ring."  
_Remind me, please, what's your age again?_  
_

 _Luhan had become my eyes and ears.  
It was his voice, telling me of my surroundings, the time and the weather, that kept up whatever thin string connected me to reality.  
It utterly fascinated me, how reality kept going as I was asleep. As if a complex soap opera was unraveling itself, while I was only able to follow it over the radio. It was intriguing, yet so distant.  
Reality didn't actually matter to me at that time. Nothing did, really.  
But then again Luhan mattered.  
Luhan lived in this reality he told me so vividly about.  
And I yearned to be an active part in this world of his._  
_

 _What are you humming? I think I don't know that song?_  
"H-huh? OH.  I'm so sorry. Ever since they played that song on the radio this morning, it has been stuck in my head. I can't seem to get rid of it. Sorry for letting this into our conversation."  
_No... No, don't be sorry. Is it a popular song?_  
"You bet it is! They've been playing it everywhere!"  
_How does it go?_  
"Uh... Just... It's called 'Just one day'."  
_Yeah, so how does it go? Can't you sing it again?_  
"W-what? My voice is horrible."  
_My world consists of nothing but your voice and I find it more than pleasant to the ear. Now come on, please._  
"Ugh, fine. That's so embarrassing! ...It goes kinda like this:  
     'If only I could be with you, for just one day  
     If only I could hold your hands, for just one day  
     If only I could be with you, for just one day

    If only we could be together, just for one day'..."

 _It sounds beautiful. ...Or maybe it's just your voice that's so beautiful._  
"Oh God, you're so cheesy."  
_That's because we're communicating through thoughts. I don't think I'd have the courage to say stuff like that out loud._  
"Kris..."  
_Yeah?_  
"I'd like your world to have more than just my voice."  
_Yeah... Yeah, I'd like that, too._  
_

 _I always felt very dependent on Luhan. Letting aside the age, because of my situation I always felt as if I was taking advantage of him.  
In retrospect, that was a pretty selfish thought. For it had always been a mutual thing between us. Luhan depended on me as much as I did on him, in a different way. He needed me for reasons I couldn't comprehend in the beginning. Unlike me, he also had a good grasp on our thought-conversation, not being entirely as careless and open as I was. And even though we were always joking and poking fun at each other, I'd sometimes get a glimpse at the serious and mature Luhan, who, under all the layers of carefree lightness, had grown an attachment to me, equal to the one I had for him._  
_

"Kris, there is something that has been bothering me..."  
_Mh?_  
"Didn't you, like,-... Ah, forget it. No, uhm, wait."  
_What is it?_  
"..."  
_Luhan?_  
"...When you told me you weren't seeing anyone... You didn't lie, right?"  
_Huh? Why would I lie?_  
"How would I know? It's just... I've seen him visiting you. I've seen him twice now, and so I asked Lay, and he told me that he comes regularly to see you. I don't wanna sound like a stalker, it's just that you told me you had no close friends, and-"  
_I don't know who you're talking about. Seriously. What does he look like?_  
"Uhm, he's about our age, and very tall, with brown eyes and hair, rather lanky."  
_...Huh. I've still no idea who you've seen, sorry._  
"He was really handsome, you know. With big, shining eyes and nice facial features. Well, he sported this kinda weird perm, but-"  
_Aaaah. Now I get it. It's Chanyeol._  
"And who might that be? You've never talked about him."  
_Well, that's because we're not close at all! Or so I've thought. I told you I was majorly active in the voluntary fire brigade, right?_  
"Yeah. That's where you came from at that day of the accident."  
_Yes, exactly. That's where I met Chanyeol. He's a gifted one-_  
"I know. I could sense it."  
_...Yeah, and since his gift revolves around the element fire, he's really eager to join the voluntary fire brigade as well. So he sticks around our base a lot, diligently helping out and studying. Still, he's only allowed on outside missions if his wind-controlling friend accompanies him, for his control isn't that brilliant. Well, it was my first time meeting another gifted one, so we naturally talked a little._  
"Still he comes all the way out to see you."  
_It surprises me as much as it does you, really. I would have never expected him to visit me even once. In fact I thought he'd just think I quit or something._  
"Well, he obviously cares, after all."  
_You know... You're being pretty snappy today._  
"Tch, I'm not."  
_You so are. Are you that jealous someone else but you noticed me vanishing?_  
"No... No. That's not it. I'm sorry. ...I just thought, because he's handsome..."  
_Really now? ...Chanyeol? He's like a puppy! ...A tall one, admittedly._  
"Hah, I could easily compete to him in terms of looks, anyway."  
_We both know that._  
"So you admit I'm more handsome?"  
_There's nothing to 'admit' when I never even denied it. You're the most beautiful person I've ever seen._  
"You... You only saw me for two seconds at most!"  
_That sufficed._  
"...  
...Wait, did you just say 'beautiful'?! I wanna be handsome! Girls are beautiful! I'm a guy!"  
_Quit whining, **Hyung**. Be more of a role model._  
"Hmpf."  
_

 _Luhan had always been so eager to get to know me. Always asking all kinds of things, be it about my childhood, my preferences or simply my way of thinking. He wanted to know everything, and I kept answering all of his questions truthfully. Somehow our communication had always been void of those social borders that applied to the regular everyday life.We talked about private, even intimate things in a free way and I bared my whole soul to him. It just happened, the flow of things too natural to feel uncomfortable. Soon I felt like Luhan genuinely knew the real me. And I, as well, had a very clear image of the person 'Luhan' in my head. But still, it remained an image only._  
_

"Have I ever mentioned you look completely like a model? Like the male version of 'Sleeping Beauty'?"  
_Well thank you? I guess?_  
"I'm serious; you're so handsome, it's ridiculous. I could snap a picture with my cam right now and print it on an advertisement. And you're only clad in this hideous white hospital stuff. I don't know if my brain could keep up if you wore anything more fashionable."  
_Oh, I'm actually kinda passionate regarding fashion. Ha, you'd like to see me dressed a little more sexy than that?_  
"Oh well. Wouldn't complain. Some pair of leather pants wouldn't do any harm, I guess."  
_Would you prefer black or grey? I might even have a dark red one in the back of my closet._  
"Seriously now? If I'd wear that I'd just look like a pimp."  
_Really? I'd like to judge that for myself, though._  
"Tch. No way in hell! ...I think I'm just missing the certain something for leather pants. You just have this aura..."  
_Aura?_  
"You just emit this cool type of an image. I mean, you always have this serious facial expression, even when asleep."  
_Yeah, I've been told I have a face that scares people off._  
"Huh? Hm... Still, to me you seem very friendly, and you're laughing a lot. I can't see how people would be scared of you."  
_Well, I might **look** scary, but I'm not a machine, you know._  
"...I can hear so many emotions, but I only ever see your sleeping face. It's such a pity. I would like to see your face acting out all of those emotions."  
_Nah, are you sure about that? Maybe you'd want to uphold the illusion. I have been told I look all intimidating, until I start laughing. Then I'd just look dumb._  
"Dumb?? Haha, I don't believe it! Beside, it sounds cute, you're lucky. My friends tell me I look hideous when I laugh!"  
_What? I don't believe that, either. You're too beautiful for that. I won't believe it until I see it._  
"I second that. Your face can't possibly look dumb. And yes, I am sure; I want to see it."  
_

 _I told him I wouldn't want him to see me. Looking back, there's no telling how much of that was a lie. Partly I meant it. Of course I wanted to see Luhan, to wake up.But another part of me was scared. Having something holding me back, however tiny, wouldn't stay hidden from Luhan, though. Nothing ever did.  
Luhan was stubborn and straight-forward, never sugar-coating his thoughts to me. But he was also pretty attentive and sensitive, maybe a side effect of his gift. Or maybe he just paid a lot of attention to me._  
_

"Since you proclaimed I was insensitive, I'll ask before-hand for permission; Can I ask you a serious question?"  
_I'm not sure if like that tone, but please do so?_  
"You **do** want to wake up... Don't you?"  
_Huh?_  
"I... Maybe... Maybe it sounds stupid to you, but I can feel it somehow. That something is off. I don't know how to explain, though."  
_Of course I want to wake up! It's my only wish at this point..._  
"Okay, let me re-phrase it, then. Is there anything that would burden you as soon as you wake up?"  
_I..._  
"Please, tell me. Kris. It's important."  
_It's just... stupid. **I'm** stupid. Forge-_  
"No, I won't forget about it. Tell me. Come on. If we can't figu-"  
_-I like you, Luhan._  
"W-what?"  
_It's, it's just that you're very important to me, you see? And when I wake up I'm kinda scared that reality might not be what I think it's going to be like.  
Maybe I got it all wrong._  
"Got what wrong?"  
_Well -  you, me, everything. I don't know._  
"..."  
_I told you it's stupid, we should-_  
"I don't think you got anything wrong."  
_What? ...How would you know?_  
"Hm... I can't simply read all of your thoughts. And you can't read all of mine, either. So let me make this clear, right now: As soon as you wake up, I'm going to pursue you. I don't know whether you're even interested in me in that way. You don't need to worry if you aren't - We will still see this through together. I just want to let you know that I like you as well, Kris. I really do."  
_But... What if everything is different from what we think? What if I'm not as you imagined me?_  
"I'm in your head right now, please. I got to know your truest form, so to say. As for myself... I'll work hard to live up to your expectations."  
_I'd never be disappointed in you._  
"See? The same goes for me. So... From now on, let's work hard to get you to wake up, okay?"  
_Yes._  
_

_Never had anyone been so close to me. Even though I knew his innermost thoughts as he knew mine, he still remained unreachable on physical terms. It was agonizing, to say the least. And with every passing conversation my desire to get even closer to him was growing._

_I never wanted to die like that. I never thought: Oh well, maybe I should just sleep forever and leave it at that.  
There had always been a reason for me to look forward to waking up. But it used to be about other people only; I wished to wake up to resume helping people, to ease the mind of that boy I saved.  
Now, gradually Luhan overshadowed those thoughts. It wasn't that I didn't want to burden him, it was actually of an even more selfish origin - for I just wished to be even closer to Luhan. And I wished for it so badly. Yearned for another look into his bright eyes, for a smile directed at me, for a touch of his porcelain skin. I wanted to confirm that everything was real, since it could as well be a figment of my coma-induced imagination. At that time this was what frightened me the most. Sometimes my desire threatened to drive me crazy, the frustration preventing me from any logical thought.  
But I wanted to believe in him, in myself. In the both of us.  
This urge to wake up was much stronger than my previous motivation, and maybe that was the key to everything._  
_

"...And then Tao and I kept talking in Chinese, just to tick him off, and Kai got so frustrated, he eventually-"  
_...!  
What...?!_  
"Kris? What was that? Are you in pain?"  
_No, but I... Luhan!_  
"W-what is it?"  
_There's something on my hand! On my right hand! I can feel it!_  
"What? You can... Feel something?"  
_Am I hallucinating? There's nothing, is there?_  
"Uh... There is, actually. I-I'm touching your hand."  
_Really? My right one?_  
"Yes. I... I only touch your hand to ease the connection, though, I'm not a pervert...!"  
_Nevermind about that, I **know** you're a pervert anyway, but I can feel it...! That's so amazing. Oh God, it feels so real. Everything feels so much closer. I can feel your fingertips over my knuckles... Wow. I'm... I'm so happy. I probably sound like an idiot, but now I feel like I could actually make it. Like I could go back to reality and continue living my life... And I will be able to see your face again, and to embrace you... I'm so excited! ...Luhan?_  
"..."  
_Luhan, what is it? Are you... Not happy?_  
"..."  
_Huh? My hand feels kinda different... Are those tears? Are you crying, Luhan?_  
"Kris... Kris."  
_Y-yes?_  
"...You'll make it... You'll open your eyes and wake up one day, so I can hold you tightly. And you won't leave me then, right? You'll come and meet my friends and take walks with me and go shopping and-"  
_I'll do whatever you want. You won't even get rid of me if you tried. I will not leave your side. I don't want to step back into my old reality; I'll build up a new one, together with you ._  
"Okay. I will hold you down to that."  
_Don't you say I didn't warn you. ...Now stop squeezing so much, you'll break my fingers before I get used to feeling 'em!_  
"S-sorry."

 

* * *

* * *

 

 

 

It was a warm day at the end of summer. The tall, Chinese man took off his bright orange waist-coat and with it the responsibility. He bid his colleagues good-bye and started walking along the lonely pavement. While most people were keeping close to the buildings' walls to seek shelter from the rain, the man went straight through it;  which made him the only person walking out in the open.  
He could see all the people staring at him, but none approaching him.  
Now that he had taken off his working attire, there was no reason for them to do so anymore.  
He could feel the heavy raindrops hitting his head and running down his forehead, leaving an ice-cold trail behind.  
He heard the peoples' chatter, but it was kinda numb and distant.  
He could smell the delicious food from all the restaurants, but there was no one for him to eat with.  
Instead he was left with the bitter taste of loneliness and isolation on his tongue.  
 

* * *

  
_Luhan?_  
"Mh?"  
_When I'll wake up... You know what I wanna do first?_  
"Tell me."  
_I want to open the window and then let myself fall. I wanna look into the deep sky. That's something I miss a lot. The sky._  
"You're gonna break your neck. No flying for you until you regain your strength, mister."  
_Ugh, who's boring now?_  
"Let's go up to the roof instead. We can watch the sky until it turns colors. Until the stars come up. Deal?"  
  
_

_I was making process. Very slowly I regained my senses. The feeling never left my hand, but instead slowly spread. Luhan visited as often as ever, going through a few exercises he thought of, together with my doctor. They mostly consisted of me making sense of touches or trying to imagine any physical form of effort. Besides that I was obligated to talk about myself, to keep up with reality. As if that was necessary - I had always been doing that with Luhan already.  
At the moment my whole treatment was kind of a secret, since it happened without any proper examinations; but my doctor was in on it, reasoning that it had already begun to show results and there was no reason to let off now. He was steadily climbing up the list of persons I owed, now standing right below Luhan and that guy who had revived me.  
Slowly, the phrase "One day" was getting more and more tangible.  
So I vowed on a lot of things to do on that "One day".  
Thanking my doctor and my savior. Going back to my job.Talking to the guy I rescued.  
But also talking to a lot more persons. Making friends, starting with Chanyeol; that weird guy who barely knew me but still was the only one who cared to notice my disappearance._

_I would get a second chance and was determined not to go back to my unhappy life. No more regrets.  
But the very first thing I was planning on doing was to kiss Luhan._

_

"So, Kris? There is something I'd like to tell you."  
_Why does this sound so horrible? What kind of dirty scandal is up to come?_  
"Oh, I didn't know we were already on that level, but if you insist - Stop that nonsense, I'm serious!"  
_You still went along with it..._  
"...Argh. Nevermind. You remember how I've told you I'm currently jobbing to meet ends?"  
_Yeah... You haven't been fired now, have you?_  
"Tss, as if - You'll hardly find anyone so willingly covering those inhuman hours. No, but I decided on going into training for a job."  
_Really? That's great! What kind of job?_  
"A job at the hospital, as a health assistant."  
_I'm really happy for you, Luhan! I hope this job will work well for you._  
"I have to thank you, Kris."  
_Me? What did I do?_  
"If it weren't for you, I'd still be lingering around, not knowing what to do with my life. But meeting you made me realize that I want to do something. You always told me you felt isolated and there were no people in your life. But still you did your best to get accepted and to change your circumstances. You've always done something to be proud of. I wanted to also be able to make other people happy. And to be able to love myself a little more."  
That... I... I feel really flattered, though I don't know if I can even live up to that speech. But it means a lot to me, Luhan. Thank you.

  
_Hold on a second, something just popped up in my mind._  
"What now?"  
_Did you just say 'health assistant'? As in... ' **Nurse** '?_  
"No, 'health assistant' as in 'health assistant'."  
_...You're becoming a nurse._  
"A male nurse, there's nothing wrong with that!"  
_So why are you getting so worked up over it, then?_  
"Oh, shut up."  
_I'm not even talking, technically.  
I'm just the voice in your head, don't mind me._

_

_Things were starting to move faster, as I was getting  more and more connected to reality again.  
One day I began to sense numb sounds around me. They became clearer day by day, though.  
Luhan's voice presented itself to be exactly as I had imagined it, and still if filled me with joy to know it was his real voice. He seemed to prefer talking to me via thoughts, though. To further entertain me, he began to bring along his friend once in a while._

_

"Kris~!"  
_Hello Luhan. ...? Is that the doctor with you?_  
"No, not exactly, it's a friend of mine. You'll surely remember him. You can introduce yourself now."  
"So... Can he hear me?"  
"Oh yes, he can."  
"Uhm, okay. I... I'm Huang Zitao, 19 years old. People call me Tao, though. Uh... It's nice to meet you."  
"Haha, you can't see it, but he just bowed to you."  
_Oh god, tell him to stop it. I'm lying on a hospital bed, there's no need for that. It's nice to meet him, though._  
"He says it's nice to meet you."  
"Oh, T-thank you."  
_...  
...He's not the most talkative one out there, now is he?_  
"Ahaha, Tao-zi here is just shy. Come on, just tell us something about yourself."  
"Uh, about me? I... There's not a lot to tell... Until recently I had some trouble, but right now I have a home, I go to school, and I found friends. I guess you could say I'm really happy- Oh, am I being insensitive? I-I'm sorry..."  
_No, no. Keep talking._  
"Just go on, Tao-zi, he's not mad."  
"Okay... I also kinda have a boyfriend. And his father owns a Korean-Chinese restaurant. If you want to we can all go there together as soon as you wake up. The food there is really delicious, almost as good as my parents home-cooking."  
_Yeah, sure. I'd like that. I think I'll invite Chanyeol too, if you two don't mind._  
"He says he likes the idea and wants to invite another friend. ...Even if I'm not sure I approve of this."  
"But Gege, he should be with anyone he likes after waking up! I'm sure the person missed him!"  
_Heh, I like him, he's on my side._  
"He says he'll reconsider for me."  
_Wait, what? I didn't-_  
"And he'll treat us."  
_Yah! That's cheating!_  
"Really? But I'm sure we won't have to pay, Kai's parents are really nice. And he shouldn't be the one to treat, anyway."  
_Hah... You're so going to be my favorite dongsaeng. Take notes on that Luhan._  
"Oh, shut up!"  
"What? Me?"  
"No, not you!"  
_Hehe._

_

_Meeting Tao was really fun. It gave me the fluttering feeling of people being there to welcome me when I'd wake up. And it wasn't only Tao. My doctor had seemingly encouraged my guests to resume talking to me more. And I began to hear the voice of that guy who I had saved. He was clearly awkward in the beginning, not knowing me at all. But soon he began telling me about this and that, recommending me certain places in the town or telling me about the other gifted ones he knew. I came to know he not only knew Chanyeol, but even was his best friend. What a small world.  
Said one also kept visiting me once in a week, sometimes even twice. Soon the deep voice that kept rambling about the voluntary service and various other things had become something I looked forward to.  
Besides him there was at least one more person silently paying me visits, though. I could tell because one time an entirely unfamiliar voice unsurely introduced itself. It slightly confused me and left me curious as to how he was connected to me.  
It was strange, overall. I had always had problems with connecting to people. I looked intimidating, I was a foreigner, and on top of that incredibly awkward, more often than not giving the wrong signals and getting misunderstood as a follow-up.  
Now that I was lying here, not doing a thing, people kept coming for me. They told me about themselves, opened up without even knowing me. And even though I could never respond in any way, I was so happy. So incredibly happy, if I would've been able to cry, I would have done so.  
The thought of being exposed to this new surroundings made me a little nervous, but at the same time I couldn't wait to wake up and show them my gratitude._

_

"Just now, something strange happened. I was casually talking to your doctor, in the break-room. And I told him about my gift getting stronger."  
_It is?_  
"Yes. Have you ever experienced the power of your gift swaying? Increasing or decreasing?"  
_Hum... Since my power is nothing that can differ a lot, it might be different for me... Of course, when you're tired or used too much energy at once, it would become more difficult to hold up anything. On the other side, if I use my gift frequently, it gets more easily accessible to me. I always thought that was natural?_  
"Huh... Maybe you're just smarter than me, then. I've indeed experienced exhaustion and the likes. But lately my gift in general has become stronger. I caught myself unconsciously listening to the thoughts of a customer this morning. Ew. Just ew."  
_I guess it's an option to increase the power of your gift by training it._  
"Yeah, it seems so. But when I told Lay, he immediately dropped everything and ran away, yelling he'd quit for today."  
_Huh._  
"Yeah. Huh. That guy remains unpredictable."  
_Maybe there's just nothing in his head for you to listen to._  
"Mh..."  
...  
"..."  
_You're being pretty quiet lately. And you sigh a lot._  
"Huh? Really? I'm sorry."  
_And I can sense you're really exhausted. Is your job tiring you out?_  
"Well... Kinda, yeah."  
_You don't need to visit me that often, then._  
"Don't be ridiculous."  
_I'm not. I'm not that helpless anymore, I'll make it without you for one day._  
"Y-yeah. Sure..."  
_...You're breathing sounds ragged. Are you alright? Are you hurt?_  
"No. I'm fine."  
_Don't lie, I can feel your hand being cold and shaky... Yah - Don't take it away.  
Luhan. I clearly heard you standing up. Where are you going?_  
"I'll just... I'll be back."  
_Wait. Luhan, wait! Don't you dare leaving me like this!_  
"Stop whining... I'll be back later-"  
_No! It's not fair!_  
"...Huh?"  
_You're feeling bad and I want to hold your arm, to stop you from leaving; so you would tell me what's wrong and rest by my side. But I can't, because I still can't move._  
"..."  
_Please, Luhan. You connected to me. Let me return this.  
Let me connect to you. Let me in._  
"..."  
_I can feel you're still there. Stay. Please._  
"...Woah. What...?!"  
_Huh? What is it? Did you just go over to the window?_  
"Yeah. Oh my God... That's..."  
_What is it? Tell me?_  
"It's light."  
_Light? The Christmas lights?_  
"No, it's so much more. It's so beautiful... I don't even know how to describe it. It's as if the whole park has been coated with light. It's on the trees, the water, even in the air, like a thousand fireflies. I've never seen something as beautiful."  
_It sounds marvelous._  
"I... I wish you could see it."  
_It's ok. Look for the both of us.  
...Wait.  
...Are you crying?_  
"K-kris... I'm sorry."  
_Hey, hey... What's wrong?_  
"I... I'm just so tired. But... I don't want to talk about it... Yet. Still, you're the most important person to me and I want to give you everything of me. Please don't think that I'm not serious. The thought of distancing myself from you scares me... I'm a coward, I know.  
Just - If you could just give me a little more time..."  
_Calm down, Luhan, hey.  
Come over to me again, please. ...Gosh, your hand is shaking even more. Breath deeply. I didn't mean to pressure you, I'm sorry. Just get some rest and-_  
"I don't want to leave, though."  
_Then don't. Stay. Just catch an hour of sleep. Lean on me._  
"That'd be so creepy, haha..."  
_Fine, then take my hand or arm or whatever suits you, Madam._  
"Okay."  
_...Your hair is tickling my forearm._  
"Stop complaining now."  
_I'm not. It's nice. Really nice._  
"...Stop being so...-  Whatever. Just stop it."  
_You too, cut it;  Just sleep now._  
"Good night."  
_Yeah, sleep well._

_

_I coaxed Luhan into visiting me a little less, so he could rest a little more. It pained me greatly to sense his suffering without being able to do anything about it. In the end he gave in and we agreed on meeting 3 times a week, until he felt better.  
Not hearing his voice for such a long time was a little lonely, but I told myself to be patient and reasonable, using the time to diligently do my exersises on my own; this way I could do something useful with my time and might wake up sooner.  
Christmas was approaching.. Luhan told me he'd come to visit me and stay the whole night. He'd even taken a day off from his jobs.  
I hadn't heard from Luhan for three days and was eager to spend time with him.  
So then, finally, Christmas Eve was there.  
But Luhan didn't turn up._

_He also didn't on the following day.  
Or the day after._

_

_The last hours had felt like a huge terrible set-back.  
I wasn't too sure about the time, but it had probably been around three days. Three days in which Luhan didn't step into my room to briskly wake me up, wishing me a Merry Christmas. Approximately 72 hours without Luhan; adding to the previous 72 hours it now made around 144 hours without Luhan. I knew I was being ridiculous, counting the hours like that.  
But it was the only thing that once in a while kept me from panicking. I was pretty sure I had to keep as composed as possible, considering my condition. Nevertheless my head was filled with Luhan. Where did he go? Why didn't he turn up? Had something happened? Had he left me for some less handicapped person? No, probably not. I was very confident in the bond we shared. But then again, the time was ticking by..._

_Still, I could hear visitors entering once in a while, or the nurses rummaging through the room. But it just wasn't the same. Also neither Chanyeol nor Baekhyun ever mentioned Luhan. Sure, they didn't actually know him after all. I wished for Tao to turn up and explain it to me. He didn't.  
It really felt like going back to being completely helpless all over again. I had become too cocky. Now I realized that without Luhan, everything I had accomplished became worthless. He had literally been my only connection to the outside world.  
Now I was isolated again. The most important issue was still Luhan, though.  
There was no one I could ask about his whereabouts. I really wished to be able to go search for him.  
So I spent hours and hours back in the darkness, thinking of possible scenarios and barely daring to fall asleep, afraid of missing possibly visitors.  
Still, it came without warning, as I had just fallen asleep.  
And it was so quiet, I almost missed it._

_

"...Kris?"  
_Uh... L-Luhan?_  
"Who else would it be, silly?"  
_R-really now? No joke? I'm not dreaming again?_  
"You're dreaming of me? I'm flattered."  
_Oh, please - Are you alright? Did something happen?_  
"What? N-no."  
_You're not telling the truth. But I'm so relieved to hear your voice. Just tell me, are you alright?_  
"I... I'll be. Very soon. It's nothing to worry about."  
_You are someone to talk - Of course I was worried sick!_  
"I'm sorry for not turning up on Christmas. Something came up. Really, I'm sorry. I will make it up to you somehow."  
_That's okay. Just promise to spend the next Christmas with me. It would've been a shame if our first Christmas would have consisted of me being in a coma, anyway. That's even un-romantic for my standards._  
"Tss, you're such a dork. But yeah, sure."  
_So... What has been up lately?_  
"Oh, not a lot. This and that. A friend of mine fell sick over Christmas and I kept him company."  
_Tao?_  
"Huh? No, Tao is fine, no worries. So... Are you holding up your progress?"  
_You're voice is kinda quiet today._  
"What?"  
_I said your voice... It's very low today, I almost can't hear you._  
"Oh, sorry. ...Better? Can you hear me more clearly now?"  
_U-Huh. So, uh, yeah. I don't know. At least I didn't have any setbacks. I can still hear, feel, even smell. I feel as if only a tiny thing is missing._  
"Haha, some sort of final push, huh?"  
_Yeah, sort of. Maybe you should just kick me once._  
"Pfft, Lay would kick **me** for that."  
_But he'd probably heal you after. He seems to be a good person._  
"Okay, Kris. Look."  
_Hm?_  
"Let's try something. I'll give you your final push, okay?"  
_...How?_  
"It's just energy. Like the one I use my gift with. I'll transfer you some, at once."  
_W-what? How do you-_  
"It's not that different from what I always do. I basically create a connection and send or move some energy."  
_You think this is gonna work out?_  
"If we believe in it, it will. It will be... The spark you need. I'm sure."  
_Okay. What do I have to do?_  
"Breath. Don't imagine to breath, **breathe**."  
_O-Okay..._  
"Yeah? You can do it, Kris. ...Just try to recall all of your will to wake up."  
_No need, it's all in my head. Are you sure you're not too tired for this? You sound pretty exhausted. We can wait._  
"Nope, it's... a perfect moment. Let's count to ten, together."  
_Got it._  
"1..."  
_**[** I want to see the sky. **]**_  
_...2._

"3..."  
_**[** I want to feel the wind against my skin. **]**  
...4._

"5..."  
_**[** I want to hear the sound of the busy city. **]**  
...6._

"7..."  
_**[** I want to inhale the smell of rain and snow. **]**  
...8._

"9..."  
_**[** I want to taste Luhan's lips. **]**  
...10._

_

Something hit me in the chest heavily and I gasped for air like someone drowning.  
The burst of energy had brought me into a sitting position. There was a loud bumping noise from somewhere, but the flood of artificial light stung greatly and drove tears to my eyes, preventing me from seeing anything at all. Every muscle in my body hurt and screamed at me to lie down, but even if I had wanted to, I wouldn't have dared. Rapidly blinking and still gasping for air as if I had run a marathon, I tried to make sense of my surroundings. Someone was calling my name, but I could hardly progress it.  
After a few seconds I forced myself to open my eyes again.  
"Lu...-", my voice was raspy and cracked in mid-speech, as my gaze fell on Luhan.  
I recognized him immediately. The soft blonde hair I saw that day now had a strawberry-blonde tinge to it, but the soft facial features left no doubt. There was Luhan.  
Lying in the bed next to me, his eyes closed and his white arms connected to several machines around it. The beeping sounds were deceivingly quiet.  
For a second, my whole world turned numb again.  
"No...", I breathed.  
"No. ...No, no, no!", I called out. But Luhan didn't react. I tried to heave myself out of bed, but my body wouldn't obey and I tumbled to the floor. The pain was agonizing as the world turned around in a blur of colors.  
"Kris!", I heard that voice calling out to me, now a lot clearer. Someone stepped next to me and tried to assist me in getting up, but I wouldn't have it, blindly reaching out for Luhan.  
"Luhan... Luhan!"  
"Kris-"  
I screamed for the first name that came to my mind.  
"Lay! Get Lay! Please -  Hurry, please-"  
"You should-"  
"Leave me here and **GO**!", I snapped furiously.  
"O-Okay. I'll go get him, ok? Stay here."  
I was leaned against my bed, as the person left running.  
I barely registered the door slamming into the wall as he went off. I was too busy trying to lift myself up to see Luhan, tightly gripping onto the side of the white, cool metal of his bed.  
Luhan. He was dying. For how long had he been there?  
"Lu-... Luhan.", I shakily said. Again my muscles ignored all of my desperate screams and gave out on me, causing me to slip down to the ground again. Just as I was thinking of how pathetic I was, I heard footsteps rapidly coming closer.  
From my perspective on the floor I could see two pair of feet enter the room, and before I knew it, I was being lifted up and coaxed to my bed.  
"Lay down again.", a calm voice instructed from the person in white, that had kept standing by Luhan.  
"No! No, I must go to Luhan!"  
"If you want to stay in this room you better lay down _right now_.", the voice said in a soft, but definite voice, that left no room for discussion.  
I only gave a pathetic whimper, but was too weak to actually resist anyway, as the person hauled me onto my bed.  
I winced at the pain.  
All the while I saw the doctor bustling around the bed to check the machines' cables.  
"I don't know what's going on-", he said in a confused voice, "Everything is rapidly deteriorating, what **is** that...?!"  
"Energy! He needs... Energy!", I wheezed out, trying to suppress a cough. All the while the other person was still trying to steady the half propped-up me. I could vaguely sense tiny, but firm hands supporting my back.  
The doctors' head flew around to me.  
"What kind of energy?"  
"Like the one you use your gift with, some sort of power, I don't know!"  
He looked at me and curtly nodded, before rolling up his sleeves quickly and partly lifting the blondes' shirt to lay his hands onto his bare chest.  
The doctor closed his eyes. For a few seconds nothing visible happened; then I could see the rates shown on the monitors slightly changing. Slowly, some of the overwhelming hysteria was leaving me.  
"Can he... Help him...?", I spoke into the room quietly. The guy that held me turned to give me a faint smile and nodded once. "He can do that, just give him a moment and don't disturb him." Signalizing my understanding, I kept quiet. For a moment, I took in the others' appearance. The guy was indeed short, almost tiny next to me. Yet his slim stature seemed to harbour more strength than what initially met the eye, since he had no trouble in supporting the dead-weight of my weakened body at all. Frankly speaking, I had never seen him before. While he took out his phone with one hand and began typing, my gaze kept lingering on him for a second. He was naturally pale, his face framed by silky black hair, with rather big eyes, that were flitting between the symbols on his display.  
 I kept wondering whether he was the one silently visiting me. If he might be that person that had introduced himself as 'Chen' once. Still, there were more important things at hand, and my gaze returned to Luhan, who still seemed lifeless as a porcelain doll.  
I tried to keep my voice down, but couldn't resist asking, the question burning on my tongue ever since my eyes had landed on Luhan.  
"How... How did it happen?"  
The stranger seemed to understand my question silently, which I was grateful for.  
"He had joined the voluntary fire brigade-"  
"He did?"  
"You didn't know? I've heard you inspired him and he wanted to try."  
"W-when?"  
"Huh? An eternity ago, maybe two months? Anyway, he was spontaneously called out on Christmas eve. You know how many incidents happen on Christmas, with all the candles and stuff- he tried to get in contact with someone inside, but since he was exhausted and went too close to the scene... A burning part of the house fell on him, causing him to hit his head."  
I was simply speechless. Now I realized that all those bruises were burns.  
"This kind of injury is dangerous.", Lay called out in a low voice, his gaze not leaving Luhan, "He was supposed to wake up shortly, now it has been about 5 days. The current development is bad."  
Now it hit me. Luhan had been so weak. He probably feared he wouldn't make it. That's why he had helped me at that point.  
That's why he had been so tired all along. He balanced between three jobs and... And he visited me regularly, spending so much energy on me.  
This final push made me realize another thing.  
"It was Luhan. He got me back. _It was all him_.", I stammered nonsensical.  
"You don't now that. It could have been due to your efforts as well.", the person tried to comfort me, rubbing circles across my back.  
"No, he is right.", Lay interrupted surprisingly, "Luhan can create connections. And he connected you to this world again. I wouldn't have thought this to be possible. We observed the situation together; he was pushing the limits of his gift farther and farther. You have been in a coma for more than three months now; your possibility of waking up was ridiculously low. Without him... Without him you would have- Ugh...-", he suddenly stopped to steady himself on the bed. "It's- I need some more. I've been working for twelve hours straight now, I don't have enough energy left."  
"Take mine.", we both said at the same time.  
"It's dangerous.", Lay explained, "I need a high amount, like really high. It can cause permanent damage to your gift. And you-", he said, looking at me, "-are barely even alive, while we both know very well that you-", he continued, looking at the other guy, "-need your gift now more than ever."  
The black-haired boy took the first step, but I held his arm firmly and shook my head, full of determination.  
"No, take mine. It's only fair - He also risked a permanent damage of his gift for me; actually he risked even more. I don't care whether my gift will be damaged or even lost. It hasn't ever been that great of a gift anyway. On top of that you obviously barely even know Luhan, he wouldn't want that."  
Lay sighed, but relented.  
"Good, bring him over. At least you should have tons of unused energy after all this time."  
I was dragged over and held out my arm obediently.  
With one hand on my arm and the other one on Luhan, Lay went back to work.  
I couldn't see a thing, but I felt a weird pull inside myself. At first I didn't feel it, but soon the exhaustion hit me like a wave. The rather short guy was steadying the both of us now with his solid grip.  
Just when my vision started to show tiny flickers of black dots, the doctor withdrew both of his hands, as if they were on fire. Lay tumbled backwards a little. I probably couldn't even begin to imagine the exhaustion he was going through in that moment.  
I left it to the stranger to take care of Lay and looked down at Luhan. The machines were beeping rapidly now, and with a flutter of his eyelashes, Luhan opened his eyes slowly.  
Those bright eyes that, even glazed with sleep, were sparkling so brightly.  
_Luhan._  
He blinked a few times and cutely scrunched his face to get rid of the sleep.  
_Luhan._  
Then he continued to look up at me. His tongue peeked out to wet his lips accordingly, and even though his voice was still incredibly faint and raw, the trace of a sassy smile graced his tired features.  
"D-don't just look at me... Open your mouth... I'm too tired to read your mind."  
I did open my mouth, but there was no sound escaping. I shakily reached out to stroke his hair and then cup his cheek. He leaned into the touch, but didn't break eye contact. His gaze was tired, but also soft, warm, loving. He was more than I had ever deserved.  
So I did, what I had been yearning for all these weeks and leaned down to brush my lips against his, as softly as possible. His lips were chapped and dry, exactly like mine. But they were also warm and soft, and I could feel him pressing back ever so lightly.  
After a few seconds I withdrew myself slowly, to look into his big, shining eyes again.  
I didn't even know what to say. Where to begin. I had always been so bad with words.  
So without thinking, I blurted out:  
"You can't just leave me."  
Luhan chuckled, though it turned more into a cough than anything.  
"S-sorry...", he croaked.  
I grasped his hand tightly. Now it was my hand on his, not the other way around.  
"...Stay."  
"I wasn't exactly going anywhere at the moment...", he joked weakly, before giving my hand a light squeeze.  
"You too, though. Stay with me."  
I nodded and let myself sink onto the white bed, half-burying Luhan under me. The rush of adrenaline that had kept me going was starting to fade, leaving me physically tired.  
With a few careful moves we had both settled, our hands loosely draped around the others' waist. We both let out a content sigh, before drifting off into a peaceful slumber.  
The doctors would probably make a fuss about me lying here.  
But there was no way I would leave. I wouldn't budge, not today. Not even an inch.  
  
 

* * *

  
"Oh no, it's starting to rain!"  
"Really? Oh, now you say it, there it goes already...", I said, as the first couple of raindrops hit my forehead.  
I watched Luhan huffing and making a small face of displeasure.  
"At least one of us should invest into an umbrella, you know?"  
Chuckling at his cute pout, I slung an arm around him, drawing him closer. We continued to walk down the street, getting slowly but surely drenched by the rain. There was no one but us out in the open by now, but I wouldn't have it any other way.  
"Oh, I don't know... I like the feeling of rain on my skin.", I hummed in content.  
"But it feels like we're missing out on all the cliche romantic umbrella-stuff."  
"...Which brings us to the cliche hot shower-stuff."  
Luhan nodded knowingly, looking ahead.  
"...True. Let's forget about the umbrella for now."


End file.
